Scharzhofberger Riesling Grosse Lage
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2042
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Pan-seared scallops, roasted pork belly, mildly spicy Thai curries
✨ Technical Specifications
The Scharzhofberg is legendary, widely regarded as one of the finest white wine vineyards on Earth. Its history stretches back to the Roman era and was cultivated for centuries by the Benedictine monastery of St. Marien ad Martyres in Trier. Van Volxem's parcels in this mythical site sit on a steep, south-facing slope dominated by highly weathered, iron-rich Devonian slate. The cool, wind-swept microclimate of the Saar valley ensures a long growing season, allowing the Riesling grapes to develop complex aromatic profiles while retaining a vibrant, electric acidity. Van Volxem crafts this Grosse Lage (Grand Cru) wine using traditional, low-intervention methods: hand-harvesting extremely low yields, spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts, and extended aging in large, neutral oak fuder casks. The resulting wine is a masterclass in tension, balancing a rich, textured palate with a profound, salty minerality and crystalline purity.
🍾 About the Producer
Perched dramatically above the Saar River in Wiltingen, Weingut Van Volxem is one of Germany's most heralded historic wine estates. Originating as a Roman villa complex with viticulture traced back to the 3rd century, the property operated as a Jesuit monastery winery established in 1743 before being acquired post-secularization by Brussels brewer Gustav van Volxem. In late 1999, Roman Niewodniczanski acquired the estate and orchestrated an ambitious renaissance, revitalizing storied steep-slope vineyards and inaugurating a state-of-the-art gravity-fed winery atop the Wiltinger Schlossberg. Managing approximately 85 hectares on Devonian slate across top-tier VDP.Grosse Lage sites—such as Scharzhofberger, Wiltinger Gottesfuß, Volz, and Ockfener Bockstein—the estate works predominantly with old, ungrafted Riesling vines. Practicing sustainable, non-interventional viticulture, cellar master Dominik Völk champions spontaneous wild-yeast fermentations and extended aging in neutral oak and stainless steel. Van Volxem produces intensely mineral, low-alcohol, dry-leaning Rieslings and refined sparkling Sekts that revive the aristocratic, turn-of-the-century prestige of traditional Saar wines.
🍇 Grapes
Riesling
🍷 ABV
12% - 12.5%